365 stories of personal giving

Posts Tagged ‘SmarTrip’

Today was a mixed bag. Several positive things happened, but also some frustrating setbacks.

I have been battling with unemployment. For some reason they have not paid me a dime since I filed back in September. I have sent letters, emails, called them, all to no avail. So, finally I decided to trek over to the closest center that they have which is on Rhode Island Avenue in NE. I get over there and wait in line to get to the front desk only to find that they stopped letting new people in 11 minutes earlier. So, once again, I am shot down by the unemployment office. I will be back tomorrow or Wednesday at 8:30 am to guarantee that I get to speak to someone.

On the positive side, I got two updates from previous recipients of the Year of Giving and I heard back from two different organizations with whom I have been interviewing. The updates were from Davie (Day 5) and Jenny (day 13). Davie is doing well. He used the $10 toward a bus ticket to NYC and is doing well there. He still plans to come back to DC in January. He was very gracious for the gift and even offered to do something in return, however, he said he wasn’t sure what that would be but said he was really good at giving mohawk, chelsea, undercut, etc. style haircuts. Not sure how I would look with one of those, but who knows!

You might have also seen that Jenny posted a comment. She promises to keep us posted on her journey during the Year of Giving.

So on my way home from the failed Unemployment Office visit, I stopped at the Giant at the Rhode Island / Brentwood Metro station. On my way out I saw a woman with a cart full of groceries waiting for someone to pick her up. Davitia, a 32 year-old resident of NW, is a Home Health Aid. She visits people, mostly elderly, in their homes and helps them with some of their basic routine items. She is very kind and I am sure she brightens the day of the people that she serves.

I got a chuckle from the response Davitia gave when I asked if she would accept the $10. She snapped her neck back slightly and said something like, “Heck yeah!” She smiled and I gave her the $10. She said that the money would probably go to her Metro SmarTrip card. Interesting that Jenny said the same thing yesterday.

I asked Davitia what she had purchased and she had the usual things to feed her family. She has three children, so you can imagine the amount of food they go through to fill their growing bellies. I was glad to meet Davitia…she brightened my day.

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I gave $10 every day for a year. Would you make a $10 donation (that's less than 3 cents a day!) today to help those in need that I have met through the Year of Giving. You will get updates on how your donation is used.